This week’s “Around the Commercial Drone Industry” news round-up looks updates concerning BVLOS and drone flights near critical infrastructure, a new scholarship program for drone professionals, and a UAV that aids in drone-based weather reporting.

Movement on US BVLOS Rules, Critical Infrastructure Protections

According to a DroneXL report, the Trump Administration this week “moved two pivotal drone regulations—Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations and Section 2209 critical infrastructure protections—to the White House for Review.” The BVLOS rule, also known as RIN 2120-AL82, would “normalize drone flights beyond an operator’s visual range” and streamline operations to “expand use cases such as delivering medical supplies to remote areas or inspecting pipelines over long distances.”  Section 2209 is a rule that “directs the FAA to restrict unauthorized drone flights near sensitive sites like power plants or airports.” For drone professionals, DroneXL writes “the BVLOS rule could lower operational costs by reducing the need for multiple pilots or waivers, while Section 2209 ensures compliance with security standards, avoiding fines or grounded fleets.”

New Scholarship for Drone Professionals

Dronelife reports on a the newly created Elevate Scholarship Program, which “aims to prepare young professionals for careers in the drone industry—a key part of the evolving technology landscape.” According to the article, the scholarship will help recipients “build a career path by connecting them with industry resources and mentors.” A collaboration between DroneDeploy, Prime Air, FlyGuys, the FAA Collegiate Training Initiative (CTI), the National Center for Autonomous Technologies (NCAT), and the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), the program “emphasizes practical skills and certified training to ensure graduates are ready to contribute to real-world drone operations” in order to meet the growing demand for skilled drone pilots.

Read Commercial UAV News' coverage of the scholarship announcement at AUSVI’s Xponential.

A Better UAV for Weather Reporting?

Researchers at Oklahoma’s Cooperative Institute for Severe and High-Impact Weather Research and Operations (CIWRO) a drone specifically “designed to improve the accuracy of weather events.” KGOU reports that the CopterSonde-3D “captures information similar to a weather tower while moving through the atmosphere.” The drone is “designed to pick up details missed by weather balloons, which are launched twice a day across the country.” In development since 2016, the CopterSonde-3D could provide “quicker alerts for people in the line of tornadoes, thunderstorms and flash floods.”